Alleghany County NC Rejects NDAA Indefinite Detention

On March 5, 2012, Alleghany County Commissioners in a unanimous vote joined eight other counties, towns and cities across the country saying NO to the indefinite detention provisions of the NDAA. There are already 10 states also considering the same – including neighboring Virginia where a bill passed both houses in the legislature by a wide margin. The bill has been forwarded to the Governor’s office for signing.

These Resolutions from counties, towns and cities are clearly sending a signal to their respective state governments that they expect them to make a stand against these new “intolerable acts” that have been handed down by the federal government. These NDAA provisions are so onerous and a threat to our liberties, so clear that they have brought together in opposition people of all different political persuasions.

The Reslution states in part:

WHEREAS, Sections 1021 and 1022 (or any wording as the bill is modified) of the National Defense Authorization Bill, SB 1867, jeopardize the
fundamental rights of American citizens to remain free from detention without due process and the right to habeas corpus in direct contravention of the guarantees of the Bill of Rights and the United States and North Carolina Constitutions; and

WHEREAS, it is indisputable that the threat of homeland and international terrorism is both real and viable, and that the full force of appropriate and constitutional law must be used to defeat this threat so that terror never wins; however, winning the war against tenor cannot come at the great expense of mitigating basic, fundamental, constitutional rights using rules, laws, regulations, bill language or executive orders;

Dennis Smith, a local Alleghany County resident, cited a media press conference put on by the Tenth Amendment Center partnered with the Bill of Rights Defense Committee and Demand Progress in a statement to commissioners. The press conference highlight state and local action against NDAA detention provisions.This bi-partisan event featured both Democratic and Republican Party officials, and also well-known civil liberties activists Naomi Wolf, who served as an adviser to Vice Pres. Al Gore, and Bruce Fein, an attorney and former Justice Department official under President Reagan.

Mr. Smith quoted Ms. Wolf as saying, “I am delighted that organizations from across the political spectrum are uniting on this, and it’s our only hope really, because this is pretty much the worst thing I’ve seen in my lifetime, and as a mother it frightens me very much for my children’s future. And of course, it’s completely antithetical to the very meaning of the word America.”

Ms. Wolf was also quoted as saying, “Once government can take people in without charge, or trial, then, you know, journalists aren’t safe, union leaders aren’t safe, clergy aren’t safe, activists aren’t safe – nobody is safe.”

Mr. Smith also referred to remarks from Bruce Fein where he echoed Wolf’s warning, pointing out the Sen. Lindsey Graham said the NDAA would bring the battlefield from abroad into the United States.

“Just think about that. How many times did we hear from the neo-cons that we had to fight in Afghanistan, Pakistan, Yemen and elsewhere? We had to fight six, seven, eight thousand miles away to prevent fighting these terrorists at home. Now we have Lindsey Graham, who is probably the greatest megaphone on that point, and now saying; ‘Now the battlefield is at home.’”

“And yet President Obama signed it with his infamous statement, ‘I’ll only use it on the bad people.’ How many times have we heard that? Now we have a rule of men rather than a rule of law.”

Finally Mr. Fein called it “the ultimate corruption of due process and everything that America stands for.”

Mr. Smith went on to say that he has spoken to County Sheriff David Edwards, and that he is opposed to these provisions of the NDAA and that “he is in support of the nullification effort in North Carolina and he would resist any attempt by the federal government to do anything like this in Alleghany County and he would not cooperate.”

We are proud of the effort by counties, towns and States all across the country in standing up for liberty and freedom and we will continue to report on their efforts here at the Tenth Amendment Center. We would also like to commend Alleghany County Sheriff David Edwards for his commitment to his Oath and hope that he will also support the Sheriffs First legislation.

The Tenth Amendment Center recently announced new model legislation to address the NDAA, The Liberty Preservation Act. It would nullify the NDAA and is ready to be introduced in any state or locality. The LPA has all the language needed to turn away the NDAA in your area.

William Kennedy [send him email] is the State Director for the North Carolina Tenth Amendment Center. A strong supporter of the Constitution, Declaration of Independence and the Bill of Rights with special emphasis on State Sovereignty protected by the Tenth Amendment.